Government (In)Action – Days Late and Millions of Dollars Short

Aug 28, 2024

The Wheat Growers are pleased that the federal government has finally listened and invoked Sec. 107 of the Labour Act and put an end to the labour strife at both national railways.

“The Wheat Growers have called for the government to take decisive action since May 2024. Agriculture and all other industrial sectors have been held hostage by this rail strike,” stated Gunter Jochum, President.

The pre-lockout slow-down by the railways has stopped the flow of grain already and will likely take weeks to fully bring everything back up to speed. Meanwhile, our export markets have been watching and some considering alternate grain sources going forward.

To arrive at this juncture is unacceptable to consumers and producers alike. Canadians cannot face the uncertainty of a rail stoppage every year. Stronger action needs to be put in place to ensure certainty for the long-term.

“The Canadian economy has been impacted by this government’s inaction. We did not need to be in this situation,” closed Jochum.

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Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.